The present invention is directed to a suction catheter suitable for use in removing undesirable fluid and debris from a patient.
Closed ventilation suction catheter systems, such as that available under the trade designation of STERICATH Model No. 6100 available from Smiths Industries Medical Systems, Inc. (SIMS), the assignee of the present invention, are presently in wide use. The closed ventilation suction catheter system includes a catheter-tube, crosspiece which connects to an endotracheal tube and also to a ventilating apparatus, a suction control member located at the end of the catheter tube opposite to that nearest the patient, a vacuum connection member located at the end of the suction control member, and a protective sleeve located between the crosspiece and the suction control member. Closed ventilation suction catheter systems make it possible to continue ventilation while at the same time applying suction to remove undesired accumulated fluid from a patient.
In removing fluid from a patient, it sometimes becomes necessary to provide a lavage solution to the patient, especially when tenacious mucous has built up. To accomplish this, the STERICATH Model No. 6100 catheter was a double lumen catheter in which one lumen provided suction while the other conveyed a lavage solution. The process of irrigating a patient with a lavage solution and suctioning out the undesired fluids can cause oxygen desaturation of the patient.
It is an object of the present invention to substantially reduce or eliminate the oxygen desaturation during suctioning while using an irrigating fluid. It is a further object of the invention to provide an oxygen-containing gas to propel the irrigating fluid out beyond the initial pull of the suction.